Category Archives: Family

Updated in 2020! 3 Sisters Singing in 3-Part Harmony about Peace with Love & Joy

Back in 2009, my sisters Sheri, Tami, and I got together at Christmas and recorded the song Dona Nobis Pacem. As I recall, the evening and the recording involved much giggling, not only by us but also by our children, who thought their mothers were acting very un-motherlike with all that childish frivolity.

(Our parents, on the other hand, were simply ecstatic, watching their progeny do something together that wasn’t bickering.)

Since then, I have shared that video here at the end of most years. Somehow on YouTube it has racked up 17K views, a few comments that could be either heartfelt or creepy, and two bah humbug thumbs down.

Then Came 2020

Last year, 2019, we didn’t celebrate Christmas together until January. So early in 2020, before the pandemic lock down — before we even knew it was coming — my sisters and I spent some face-to-face time working on a joint yoga project. We got together at the local YMCA for a quick DIY photo shoot, and, oh hey, let’s also sing the song again to make our parents happy.

Little did we know it would be the last time we’d all be together for the rest of the year and into the foreseeable future.

3 Sisters Singing

We’ve been hanging on to this short clip for almost the entire pandemic. Here’s the updated version of the Holden Sisters singing Dona Nobis Pacem in our small attempt to bring forth peace, joy, harmony, and love in a world that needs all those qualities more than ever.

May 2021 bring to you and your loved ones a mega-dose of love, peace, joy, and harmony.


This post is part of #MicroblogMondays. Whazzat? A post that’s not too long. Head to Stirrup Queens to join the fun.


More posts tagged “sisters.”

guide to living in open adoption

Lori Holden, mom of a teen son and a young adult daughter, writes from Denver. Her book, The Open-Hearted Way to Open Adoption: Helping Your Child Grow Up Whole, is available through your favorite online bookseller and makes a thoughtful anytime gift for the adoptive families in your life. Catch episodes of Adoption: The Long View wherever you get your podcasts.

Lori was honored as an Angel in Adoption® in 2018 by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.

RNO & BOS

After early summer’s two trips, mid-summer also brought two trips. The first was a couple of speaking engagements at a renowned adoption camp (RNO/Lake Tahoe), and the second was in my husband’s hometown (Boston).

Keynote in Tahoe

The annual PACT Camp took place the week of our anniversary, so my husband came with me to Reno/Tahoe for a working getaway.

I cannot say enough good things about this camp, held at the beautiful alpine Granlibakken resort. I was a bit of an outsider in that I am not part of a transracial family. But everyone at camp, from the young campers to their parents to the staff to Director Beth Hall made me feel incredibly welcome and included. Walking the talk, you might say, cultivating a culture that expresses the opposite of Othering.

On the 4th of July I presented a keynote (The Open-Hearted Way to Adoption) and a workshop (Living Open Adoption: Practical Guidance for Challenging Situations). The response to these got me more than a little high — the kind that’s legal in all states.

Continue reading RNO & BOS

ATL & DEN

Early summer brought two trips: the first to the place where I first met my late friend, Jeni, and the second in my own hometown.

Atlanta for Work

My new position with Family to Family Support Network™ took my colleagues and me to Atlanta for AWHONN’s annual convention of nurses (Association of Women’s Health, Obstetrics and Neonatal Nurses). We presented a workshop on our Unique Families Program™ and held a board meeting/planning session.

Continue reading ATL & DEN